In life, we are born with dependence and innocence. As we grow, we try so hard to find who we are and we crave something called love--both in loving someone and in being loved. Love is an emotion of regard and affection. It is devotion and attraction. Loving can often be confused with lust, desire, and obsession--an unhealthy preoccupation influenced by the powerful force of a strong emotion. Truly loving someone doesn’t just happen in the blink of an eye and it doesn’t appear overnight either. Love is not only an emotion, but also an action. It takes time to grow, to strengthen, to expand, and to be pure.
As we grow and mature, we may experience love a few times. Along the way, we get hurt, we make mistakes, we cry and crumble, and, at some point, a part of us changes. Each time that we love, it gets harder and harder to love again. We fear. We try to be careful. We hold walls up. We still get hurt. What is love? I don’t know that answer, yet, but I'll get there someday. I truly believe that everything has a purpose and a reason. If it’s meant to happen, it will. For whatever reason things happen, I try to allow them to teach me something valuable rather than letting them make me bitter, or sad.
Love is precious. It's not something to give freely, or easily. However, it's not something that can be forced either. Loving people in a healthy way should mean that you accept them for all that they are and that you will be there for them through everything. It's not a 50/50 effort. It should be a 100/100 effort of giving all that you can in any type of relationship. The best part about loving is that you can love yourself too. If you have a hard time doing so, sometimes the people in your life can show you why you should love yourself. These people may embrace you for everything that you are or they may mistreat you, but the moment when you feel that you don't deserve something is the moment when you begin to love yourself and also respect yourself.
It's okay to be a little cautious. It's okay to take your time. Nowadays people rush, get ideas in their heads, and set themselves up for heartbreak. Why can’t we all just live in the present? Live by the days and not by ideas of the future. Love is a hard thing. Sometimes it’s blind, sometimes it hurts, sometimes it’s magical, but what is love? Whatever love you have experienced, don't give up on the ones who will love you in the future. If someone walks into my life and shows me that they want to know me and be a part of my life, I won't be scared. I want to take that chance, no matter what I have been through. I want to let all of my experiences, good and bad, shape me in a good way.
